Changeable combination key-lock.



No. 701,230. Patented May 27, I902. w. H. TAYLOR.

CHANGEABLE COMBINATION KEY LOCK. Application filed Mar. 10, 1902.) No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I;

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[Application filed Mar. 10, 1902.1

2 Sheets-Sheet (No Model.)

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WVARREN H. TAYLOR, OF STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE YALE & TOYVNE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF

NECTICUT.

STAMFORD, CON- SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 701,230, dated May 27, 1902.

Application filed March 10, 1902. Serial No. 97,588. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WARREN H. TAYLOR, of Stamford, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Changeable Combination Key-Locks and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Myinvention relates to an improvement in changeable combination key-locks, and is designed particularly as an improvement on the construction disclosed in Patent No. 690,537, granted to me January 7, 1902.

In the construction disclosed in the patent above referred to the bolt carries a series of movable fences which engage a stationary spline when the bolt is thrown to a locked position and which are disengaged from said spline each time the bolt is retracted. While this look has proven satisfactoryin the main, this movement of the fences toward and from the stationary spline is undesirable for the reason that the obvious wear which takes place between the parts thus brought together and separated may eventually interfere with the proper adjustment of the parts in the event of a change in the combination.

The object, therefore, of the present invention is to remove this objection, which I do by providing a spline which is normally in engagement with the several fences and which is disengaged only when it is desired to change the combination of the lock.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in elevation of my improved lock with the face-plate of the casing removed and the bolt in its locked position. Fig. 2 is'a similar view showing the bolt in its unlocked position. Fig. 3 is a View of the mechanism for preventing the withdrawal of the key and also showing the spline and the mechanism for disconnecting it from the several fences. Fig. 4 is a view in section, showing the spline-operating cam; and Fig. 5 is-a view in longitudinal section.

1 represents the lock-casing, and 2 the bolt slidingly mounted therein and provided near its rear end with an elongated slot 3 for the passage of the fixed stud 4, on which the tumblers 5. are mounted. Mounted on the bolt near its outer end,'but within the casing, is the arm 6, carrying the spline 7. This arm is pivotally mounted at one end on a stud, screw, or other device integral with or carried by the bolt, and the spline 7 is located adjacent to the free end of the arm, so as to get the benefit of the entire swing of the arm, and projects rearwardly in a position to enter the gates or notches in the fences 9. This arm is engaged by the spring 8, which tends to force the upper free end of the arm 6 and the spline 7 thereon rearwardly toward the fences, and the latter are slidingly mounted on the studs 10, carried by the bolt. There is a fence 9 for each tumbler, and each fence is provided with two elongated slots 11 for the passage of the studs 10, and each is also provided on its front face with a series of notches 12 for engaging or receiving the spline 7 and on its rear face with a rearwardlyprojecting tongue 13, designed to enter the gating 14 in its respective tumbler 5. The spring 8 normally holds thespline in engagement with all the fences, and as the spline and the fences are all carried by the bolt it will be seen that during the ordinary operations of the bolt there is no separation whatever of the spline and fences, but that, on the contrary, they maintain their engagement and move with the bolt. There is a tumbler for each fence, and the several tumblers are all pivotally mounted on the stud or post 4, which, as before stated, acts as a guide for therear end of the bolt. Each tumbler is also provided at its free end with. a gating 14 for the tongue 13 on its fence, and each is also provided with a spring 15, which normally tends to hold the tumblers against the key-hub 16. The fences are separated from each other by the spacing-plates 17, which latter also overlap the free ends of the tumblers and operate to keep the tumblers in positive alinement with their fences. The key-hub 16 is provided with a cam 18, which latter when the hub is rotated by the key ongages a shoulder on the bolt and moves the latter to its unlocked position. In order to prevent the accidental withdrawal of the key by the spring-actuated tumblers 5.

when the lock is in its unlocked position, I have provided the cam-stop 18, which latter is mounted on stud or post 4 and normally rests in the path of cam 18 on key-hub 16, thus preventing the latter from being accidentally or inadvertently rotated to a posi tion where the key can be withdrawn; It of course can be turned in a direction to again lock or shoot the bolt; but when this camstop is in its normal position the movement of the cam in a direction to retract the bolt cannot be continued sufficiently far to carry the key to a position where it can be withdrawn. The combination is changed when the bolt is in its retracted position and is accomplished, by the removal of the key by which the bolt was retracted and the insertion of another key, together with other manipulations to be hereinafter referred to. Hence itis necessary to provide means for removing the cam-stop from the path of the cam, and a simple way to accomplish this is to provide the cam-stop with a pin 18, which passes through a slot 19 in the lock-casing. By simply pushing upwardly on the pin 18 the cam is carried out -22, engaging a stud 22, depending from the arm 6, which carries the spline 7, the latter will be pushed out of the notches in the fences, thus permitting the fences to be pushed down While the spline is still disengaged from the fences a new key is inserted and turned to raise the tumblers and the fences carried thereby, after which the cam 22 is released, thus permitting the spline to fly back and enter the notches in the fences, thus changing the combination to the new key. When the bolt is in its locked position, the arm 6 rests against the front end of the casing or against a rigid stop adjacent thereto. Hence it is only when the bolt is unlocked that the combination can be changed. Consequently the key which looked 'the bolt must necessarily be employed for unlocking it.

It will be observed that if for any reason when a new key is inserted and turned in the direction for locking the movable fences should not form a proper connection and engagement with the spline, the size and adj ustment of the parts, together with the location of the arm 6 adjacent to the end wall of the locking-casing, are such as to prevent the bolt from being shot to its locked position or sufficiently to allow of the removal of the key. Consequently the bolt cannot be moved to its locked position unless all the parts are in shown and described in the patent previously referred to. This guard-key mechanism is actuated by a master or other key usually held by a custodian and operates to release the cam on the key-hub, so as to permit the latter to be turned. Hence with the look as shown itis first necessary to release the keyhub byinsertingand partly t-urningtheguardkey, after which the main key is inserted and the bolt withdrawn. The act of shooting the bolt again locks the key-hub, so that the use of" the master-key is essential before the bolt can be retracted. This mechanism is fully shown, described, and claimed in my previous patent, hence need not be more specifically referred to herein.

It isevident that many slight changes might be resorted to in the relative arrangement of parts herein shown and described without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention. Hence I would have it understood that I do not wish to limit myself to the exact construction of parts shown and described; but,

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a changeable combination key-lock the combination with a bolt, a fence carried by the bolt, and a tumbler coacting with the fence, of a yielding device also carried by the bolt and normally engaging the front edge of the fence, and means for disengaging said device from the fence when a change in the combination is to be eifected.

2. In a changeable combination key-lock, the combination with a bolt, a fence carried thereby and a tumbler coacting with the fence, of a yielding device movably mounted on the bolt and normally engaging the front edge of the fence, and means for disengaging said device from the fence when a change in the combination is to be effected.

3. In a changeable combination key-lock, ,the combination with a bolt, a fence carried thereby, and a tumbler coacting with the fence, of a spring-pressed arm pivoted to the bolt and carrying a spline which latter normally engages the fence, and means exterior of the casing whereby the arm may be moved to disengage the spline from the fence.

4. In a changeable combination key-lock, the combination with a bolt, a fence carried thereby and a tumbler coacting with the bolt, of a spring-actuated arm pivoted to the bolt and carrying a spline normally engaging the fence, and means engaging the pivoted arm, and accessible from the outside of the casing for moving the spline out of engagement with the fence.

5. In a changeable combination key-lock the combination with a bolt, a plurality of fences movablymounted thereon, a series of tumblers, and spacing plates between the several fences and overlapping the adjacent ends of the tumblers, of a spline carried by the bolt and common to and normally engaging all the fences, and means for disengagthe fence, of an arm pivoted to the bolt and carrying a spline, the said arm being located between a fixed stop and the fence so that the arm can be moved to disengageits spline from the fence only when the bolt is in an unlocked position.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WARREN I-I. TAYLOR.

Witnesses:

SOHUYLER MERRITT, ISAAC N. MERRITT. 

